Jimbo's Lake Lanier Guide Service Fishing Report and Pictures of Spotted Bass: 12/23/2013

Hey Everyone - Merry Christmas from the Jimbo clan here in Cumming! From our family to yours, we wish you a very happy and safe holiday with friends and family. On the fishing front, the lake has came up just a tic...LOL...its now back to almost 2 feet over full pool and today, we found 56 degree water temps in the backs of some creeks. And yes, the bait and the big fish had followed. A Davis Shaky Head around docks seemed to be the best offering and location this afternoon. We tried alot of different areas before settling in on the dock pattern, and it was strong. Jeff, above middle, is sporting one of those toad dock fish from this afternoon. Prior to the front, we had been doing well in creek ditches in the morning with a Fish Head Spin, Jerkbait, and Davis Shaky Head. Most fish had been coming in the 12 -20 feet range. As the day progressed, we were moving to the rock areas and points around creek mouths and throwing a jig, crankbait, and shaky head for our best fish. These fish tended to be the most shallow as our biggest fish were often the most shallow - nearly on the bank in some cases. For the coming week, I have the 27, 28,and 29th open. Also, my traditional New Year's Day customer is not going to make it this year, so I also have New Year's Day open also. Not sure what it is, but we always seem to have a great day on Jan 1st....give me a call and let's go fish! Merry Christmas and May God Bless - Jimbo

Jimbo's Lake Lanier Guide Service Fishing Report: 12/14/2013

Hey Gang - Glad I am not out there today, but we have had a very good week for numbers and big fish as well, even last Sunday during that nasty day that looks just like this one! The ditch bite has really picked up for us over the last week. The classic Fish Head Spin in the ditches is really working well right now. I enjoy this bite and it is a must have in your winter arsenal. We have been starting every morning in the ditches and catching lots of fish and good ones too. In addition to the spots, we have been running into the occasional Largemouth as well. Most of these ditch fish are coming in the 8 - 20 feet depth range. In additon, we are continuing to spend a good amount of time on rocky points, ledges, and bluffs. The rock has also been very consistent for us over the last week and we have been catching some big fish on this pattern, again, both spots and largemouth. The Spro DD Little John has been really good, along with Davis Shaky Heads and Chattahoochee jigs. Yesterday, I had the pleasure of taking out Zane Smith along with my long-time customer Hector. Zane pitched in the bigs for 13 years in the 80's and 90's, including 6 seasons with the Braves. Just a great guy and a great day - they whacked about 25 fish through the day with their best 5 going 18 pounds. We had a blast and laughed all day. Zane has promised a return trip so I know there are more stories to come on this front. Awesome job fellas! Guys, the weather forecast for the next few days looks awesome! I have the following available this coming week: All day Tuesday & Friday,as well as Thursday morning. Give me a call if you would like to get out and enjoy some beautiful December weather and some great winter fishing! Also, remind your sweethearts to give the gift of Jimbo this Christmas! I sell several gift certificates every Holiday Season and I am told they make great presents! LOL. Give your wives a nudge here and I will make sure you guys enjoy some great trips! Thanks to all, and May God Bless! Jimbo

Jimbo's Lake Lanier Guide Service Fishing Report: 12/1/2013

Hey Everyone - I was away last weekend and the first of this week as we departed to Indy for a wedding and an early Thanksgiving. Been on the water since returning and found that suprisingly, not much has changed in terms of the fish position. Even though the water temperature dropped 5 degrees or so, the fish and bait remain in about the same position. We are still catching fish shallow on rock for the most part. Rock is definitely the key. It can be rock in a creek, main lake, around a dock, it doesn't seem to matter as long as there is rock. Brush or cover helps on some days, but on others the fish are just roaming on and around the rock, and are often VERY shallow. I have checked for the ditch bite and there are fish in some of the traditional locations, but they are not there in force yet, because the bait is not there in force yet. When the bait gets there, the fish will follow. The last week or so, three baits have produced the majority of our fish, including some studs: Davis Shaky Head, Chatahoochee Jig, and a Spro Little John DD. Our strategy on most days is to cover water, and lots of it. No need to spend much time in any one location, if they are there, they will eat quickly. As the temperatures continue to drop, I look for the ditch bite to pick up, along with the timber bite out deeper. There are some fish out deep, but our big ones are still coming shallow. Looks like we are in for a cold winter, which should be great for the deep bite. We have not had a cold winter in a few years - we are due. The good news is if you can handle the cold, the bite should be awesome. I am full for the next 8 days except I do have Tuesday open this week if you are interested in getting out on Lanier. I also have some dates open the week of December 9th (next week). Rick is available on Hartwell and the other North Georgia lakes, and Jamie is running those Hooch river trips for me as well, which is quite an experience. Float and Fly fishing is not on fire yet, but Craig can teach you the technique on Carters or even Allatoona. Call me if you want to fish, we would love to have you as our guest!! Thanks to all, and May God Bless! Jimbo

Jimbo's Lake Lanier Guide Service Fishing Report and Pictures of Spotted Bass: 11/18/2013

Hey Gang - We have been having a great fall of fishing and you folks have been keeping me busy - I am grateful - Thank You!! I have lots to share in this report, so let's get started. We have been doing well on rock for the last 10 days or so. We have been focusing on rock bluffs and points for the most part all day every day that I have been out. This pattern has been producing consistent heavy sacks and big fish for my customers...until Saturday. LOL. The sack Joe and Kurt are sporting above came from Friday. My customer Ron Clark and I fished the Hammond's Tournament on Saturday. We weighed 15.34 and finished 1 ounce and 1 place out of the money. Our big fish was over 4 and we had a 2 pounder the we could just not cull. We caught 3 limits of fish through the day and culled 4 times on the rock pattern. A SPRO DD crankbait gave us our 2 best fish, and a jig provided the rest of the fish we weighed. Steep rock bluffs and points in 2 - 20 feet were the key for us. We fished clean, however, in retrospect, I made a couple of bad calls through the day and elected to check some back-up patterns instead of staying with the rock. Mistake! All was good in the end though and Ron and I had a blast as usual. Tim Hawkins and Steve Gerbig did a great job running the weigh-in and everything went smoothly as do all the Hammonds Tournaments. A special call out to Steve Pescitelli and his son Noah. They have been out with me on a dozen trips or so over the last year. I almost feel like Noah is my own son at this point, and Steve is like a brother to me. They have came a LONG way in a very short time and I am extremely proud of the them. Noah and his dad finished 13th in the Hammond's tourney Saturday with a sack of 15.01. This was against a strong field of 62 boats - they beat a bunch of Lanier's top sticks and almost beat me too! LOL. They are awesome people and I have thoroughy enjoyed working with them as they are both outstanding students. Great job guys - and as usual, I am looking forward to our next class on the water!! As most of you know, my business has really been growing over the last year. Jimbo's has expanded to Hartwell with Rick Steckelberg as my lead guide up there, and I have had several multi-boat trips on Lanier lately as well. I am very excited to announce that I am adding two more guides and two more bodies of water for this fall and winter. Craig from the Dugout in Kennesaw will be running Float and Fly trips on Carter's Lake for me this winter, and Jamie Koza, who owns and runs the Dugout and Kennesaw Bait will be running trips on the Chattahoochee River for Largemouth as well. Craig is an EXPERT with the float and fly rig and there is no better lake on which to learn this technique than Carters. This is a great experience and a technique that is often unmatched for producing big winter sacks. Also, for a limited time this fall and early winter, Jamie is going to be running trips on the Hooch and doing some river fishing for giant Largemouth Bass. This is an unforgettable experience and one I also highly recommend. These trips will be ran on a section of the river near Six Flags theme park and I promise you will learn and see things which you have not before seen!! I am full this week, but Nick is available to guide for me on Lanier this week if you would like to get out. Rick is also available on Hartwell, and he too will be doing trips for me on other popular Georgia Big Bass Lakes on the Savannah River chain like Burton, Rayburn,and Seed. Rick is in tune with most of the Georgia lakes and he has competed and won on most of them. Rick can help you on any of those lakes - Jimbo's is now your one-stop-shop for bass fishing! Lots of growth and lots of changes at Jimbo's! For November on Lanier, I have the 27, 29, and 30 open, and I am also booking for December. The fish are starting to move into the ditches and the Classic Lanier deep ditch bite is just starting, but will get much stronger as the water continues to cool and the bait moves into their winter holes. The weeks upcoming are great to learn the Fish Head Spin bite in the ditches, as well as the deep jig bite in the timber. A quick summary of the other lakes available through Jimbo's with dates available NOW: Lanier, Hartwell, Carters, Burton, Rayburn, Seed and the Chattahoochee River. Also, Rick takes requests! Call me if you want to fish in Georgia, we can get you set up! For fishing reports on other Georgia Lakes, please visit: www.southernfishing.com Many thanks to all, and May God Bless - Jimbo

Jimbo's Lake Lanier Spotted Bass Guide Service Fishing Report: 10/30/2013

Hey Gang - Well the lake is finally almost exactly back to full pool. It stands at .06 feet over full at the time of this post. The lake has been experiencing some turnover. Areas of the lake look good, and others not so much. Aside from all that stuff, the great news is the fish are biting well right now. The other good news is that you can pretty much take your pick of how and where you want to catch them too....it's pretty fun as you can run a number of different patterns through the day and catch big fish on most of them. The only thing pretty consistent for me is that we are starting our days shallow on rock almost every trip for the last couple of weeks. After that, I let the conditions lead me to the best bite. And folks, that could literally be almost anything. Topwater over brush, to jig on rock, to a shaky head on a point, to a drop shot deep around the timber. Its all there right now. Here is a list of some of the baits we have caught good fish on recently: spinnerbait, crankbait, Chattahoochee Jig, Davis Shaky Head, drop shot, topwater, Fish Head Spin, jerkbait, and a Sworming Hornet Bite Size Herring Swimbait. Whew. Long List. LOL. I think the best message I can send to you guys without having you in my boat to show you is to stay versatile, especially as the numerous fronts of fall come and go. Try different areas and techniques. Don't stay in any one area too long and don't have a favorite bait. The best bite is different every day for us. This is a great time of year to work on any variety of techniques you may want to learn. I am full this week and have been for the past couple of weeks since my move (Thank you for the calls!), but I do have most of next week available as it stands now. Give me a call and let's get out there. The leaves are really starting to change and it is gorgeous on our pond. Lastly, I want to offer a special congratulations to Noah Pescitelli for his 2nd Place Finish in the the Wackem High School State Championship this weekend. Noah and his partner had a 2 day total of 20.76 pounds and missed the victory by .03 pounds. Wow. Noah and his partner are now qualified for the National High School Championship in 2014. Way to go Noah!! For fishing reports on other Georgia Lakes, please visit: www.havefunfishing.com Thanks to all, and May God Bless - Jimbo

Jimbo's Lake Lanier Guide Service Fishing Report: 10/15/2013

Hey Everyone - Well I am happy to report that I am finally moved into the new crib here in Cumming. What an incredible task that was - for the life of me I don't understand how we accumulated so much stuff! I want to start by congratulating Rick Steckelberg on his 2nd place finish in the BFL Regional here on Lanier this past weekend. Rick is now qualified for the BFL All-American to be held at Wilson Lake, Alabama in 2014. As a recap, Rick started each day throwing a 3/8 oz brown Sworming Hornet jig on rocky points and humps in 15-20 feet of water for some big bites early. The jig bite was over after daylight broke, and Rick then concentrated on brush for the rest of his days with a drop shot, taking the opportunity to sling at schooling fish through each day with a Lucky Craft Gunfish and a Sworming Hornet Snack Sized Herring to round out his daily 5 fish creels. Rick's 3 day weight total was 41.01 lbs. Also of note, Rick's Co-Angler on Day 3 took home the victory in the non-boater division. For his efforts, Bryan Cothran won a Ranger Z 518. Again, a big congrats to Rick for his outstanding finish and good luck to him as he tries again for the Truck and Boat 1st Prize in the BFL Regional this weekend on Lake Hartwell. The bite is still strong as topwater and swimbaits are producing well out there. I am back on trips starting tomorrow. Here is what I have left open in October: 22, 23, 24, 25, 28, 29, 30. Give me a call and let's go fish! Thanks to all and May God Bless - Jimbo

Jimbo's Lake Lanier Spotted Bass Guide Service Fishing Report: September 29, 2013

Hey Everyone - It has been awhile since my last report. I just finished an 11 day run of trips and I am enjoying a day off today. Thank you all so much for your phone calls. I so enjoy what I do and I have all of you, along with my wonderful sponsors, to thank for me being allowed to pursue my dream. Thank you! The bite on Lanier has been nothing short of outstanding for the last 3 weeks or so. We have had multiple 20+ pound sacks of spotted bass and several spots 5 pounds or more, including one over 7 pounds (pictured above right - check the eyes out on that big girl - that is an OLD, FAT fish!) Suffice it to say that the fish have been looking up most of the time. We have caught a few fish on the bottom, but by the far the majority of our fish have been coming up to get the baits. Topwater, Swimbaits of many different types, along with a few other key presentations, have been very productive. I have been guiding some folks in preparation for some current and upcoming tournaments, so out of respect to them and the information they have paid for, I am going to refrain from going into any further detail. I don't normally do that, but I just feel it the right thing to do at this point. I am always honest in my reports, so rather than making some stuff up or posting misleading information, I am just going to refrain from discussing. I certainly hope you all understand. Look for some more thorough reports to come after the weekend of October 13th, and thanks for your patience. In other news, I want to congratulate my good friend and Lake Hartwell Guide Rick Steckelberg for his recent victory on Westpoint in the BFL Super Tournament down there. He will be fishing the BFL Regionals both on Hartwell and here on Lanier as well in the coming weeks. He is fishing Day 2 of the Clark Hill Event today and was sitting in 12th going into Day 2, one place behind where he was on Day 1 at Westpoint before he won it. Congratulations Rick and good luck today!! I am back on Lanier tomorrow for another full week of trips. I do have Friday, October 4th available, which is my only available day in the next 7 days. I do have some dates open the week of October 7th, so give me a call and let's go fish. The fishing is incredible, don't miss it!! Rick has a few dates on Hartwell also, but also has some big tournaments coming up - call me ASAP if you would like to fish with Rick as his schedule is tightening up. Again, a huge thanks to everyone for your support, and for the support of all of my incredible sponsors: G-Loomis Fishing Rods, Shimano, Lowrance, Hammond's Fishing, Sworming Hornet Lures, Davis Baits, Trokar Hooks, Seaguar Fishing Line, Wackem, Chattahoochee Jigs, LanierMAPPED.com, JJ's Magic, and Hinkle Marine. For Fishing Reports on other Georgia Lakes, please visit: www.havefunfishing.com May God Bless! Jimbo Jim "JIMBO" Mathley Spotted Bass Fishing Guide - Lake Lanier jim@laniermapped.com Mobile - 770-542-7764 www.jimboonlanier.com Proudly Sponored By: G-Loomis Fishing Rods SHIMANO Lowrance Sworming Hornet Lures Wackem Crazy Baits Seaguar - Always the Best JJ's Magic Attractant Hammond's Fishing Davis Bait Company LanierMAPPED.com Hinklemarine.com LazerTrokar.com